


spoken truths

by grootmorning



Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Comedy, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Post-Canon, foggy's just having a medical crisis, frank's just amused by this entire thing, how am i supposed to cope, karen can't lie anyway matt would be able to tell, look this was entirely plausible in daredevil season 4 and now we'll never get to see it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-05 02:59:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16802323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grootmorning/pseuds/grootmorning
Summary: karen finds that revealing a secret to your two best friends is actually harder than you think. that's okay, frank is willing to help.





	spoken truths

Karen groaned as Frank pressed a knuckle to the arches of her feet, tilting her head back into the armrest of the couch. This was something she had not expected to happen. She had gotten way too used to wearing her flats into work. One evening of wearing her old heels had sent her feet into a crazed panic. 

She never thought she'd be missing the days where she would slip into her trusty heels on a daily basis. That would have at least saved her this insane cramp in her thigh.

Frank's thumb hit another sore spot, causing Karen to exhale loudly. He looked up, part sympathetic and part amused. "I told you not to wear the shoes."

"You did," Karen sighed, raising a hand to push at his shoulder exasperatedly. "Happy now?"

Frank shrugged noncommittally, humming as he pressed at another sore spot. Another cramp shot up her leg, and she bolted up right to clutch at her calf in pain. His strong hands simply held her foot in place, massaging it to make the pain go away.

"I'm throwing the pair of shoes away."

"Sure you are," Frank coughed, hiding a laugh.

"I heard that mister," she knew full well that he liked that pair.

Whatever witty reply Frank was coming up with was drowned out by the shrill sound of the doorbell ringing. Both their heads turned towards the door confusedly. 

"Expecting anyone?"

Karen shook her head worriedly. "No," she whispered.

In two steps, Frank was pressed up against the alcove next to the door, his back resting against a storage cupboard, his hand already pulling a gun out from behind his back. His demeanour had instantly changed to that of an angry guard dog, poised to attack. For some reason, Karen felt no concern, and only sent up a short prayer that she wouldn't need the bleach from under the kitchen sink tonight. 

Opening the door cautiously, Karen breathed a sigh of relief and pulled it open a respectable distance. "What are you guys doing here?" The grin on her face was unmistakeable and uncontrollable at the unexpected callers before she realised who she had in her apartment at that moment. 

"Drinks!" Foggy cheered, holding up bottles of whatever assorted liquor he'd pulled out from his and Marci's apartment. Matt simply shrugged with a serene expression on his face, hands twisting around the cane that he still carried around for show.

"What's the occasion?"

To that, Foggy just chorused "Drinks!" again and she sighed. Not that Karen wasn't glad to see her friends, but this wasn't the optimal time, given that she had a six foot tall man behind her front door, slowly stashing his gun back into the back of his jeans. "Maybe - "

Out of nowhere, Matt's hand slapped against the door, his expression hardening. "Karen, who's in your apartment?"

Oh yeah, she forgot that it wasn't a good idea to lie to Matt. Foggy's exuberant expression was slowly morphing into something akin to worry, and Karen grumbled for a bit internally. Someone up there really didn't like her at all today. 

"Karen - ," Matt's tone grew more urgent, and he began to push into her apartment. He was already folding the cane up into its compact form, brandishing it like one of this weapons. Foggy hung back behind Matt, but tightening his grip on the bottles as if he was about to throw it.

Karen felt a hysterical laugh build up in her chest.

"Don't destroy anything," she said hurriedly, pushing him back a step before they all tumbled into the apartment. "I have someone over."

"Well, you should have just said so, Karen," Foggy cheered up considerably. "We can all have a drink together and you can introduce us to your new friend."

"I know this smell, and this heartbeat," Matt said slowly. "It's familiar, like - " He took another step, just as Karen, already resigned to her fate, stepped back to let them in.

"Holy fuck," Foggy's arm really did come up like he was about to fling the bottle at Frank's head.

Frank shoved his hands into his pockets as he took his place behind Karen, staring at the two men with a glint in his eyes, "Hey, Red. Long time."

"Castle," Matt's hands clenched hard around his cane. 

Karen took the bottles from Foggy with another loud sigh. She was going to need one bottle to herself.

-

They'd settled uncomfortably into the living room, staring suspiciously at each other. Karen looked at the men in her life as she got glasses from the kitchen cupboard, feeling the hysterical laughter bubble up again. She knew that this conversation would be had sometime, but she really didn't expect it to be this soon.

Frank had taken up his usual seat on the singular armchair that had the most comprehensive view of the room with its back to the wall with the bookshelves. His arms were folded and he was staring steadily at the pair on the couch. Foggy gulped, pulling out his phone to thumb through it in an effort to not look at Frank. Matt on the other hand, was holding Frank's gaze. Kind of, in his own Matt way of looking but not seeing. The air between the pair of them crackled with invisible tension even as Foggy winced further, sinking deeper into the couch cushions. 

Karen set the glasses down onto the coffee table with a clang, before taking up position leaning against Frank's armrest, crossing a leg delicately over the other. 

It only took a second for Matt to burst out with a "What is he doing here, Karen?"

Foggy swallowed his mouthful of whiskey that he had hurriedly poured, "I second that question. I too would like to know that." He shrank back as Frank turned his gaze on him, tucking his body discreetly behind Matt's. Foggy was not a man easily cowed, not after all he'd been through, but this was the Punisher for goodness sake.

"Well, the thing is, I wasn't expecting anyone over today - " Karen wrung her hands, the thoughts in her mind racing past at a million miles per hour. Now that she actually had to explain herself, she realised that she had no idea what to say. You would have thought that she'd prepared for this moment, but maybe she was hoping that it would never occur.

"So, you're saying that if we'd told you that we were coming over, you would have hid him away and he would have just returned after?" 

Frank's voice was low and tinged with just a hint of amusement, "You make me sound like some sort of mistress, Nelson."

"Well, are you?" Foggy wagged a finger at him disapprovingly, eliciting a laugh from everyone but Matt. Catching himself, Foggy put his hand down, looking chastised but still at Karen for answers.

Frank's warm weight was firm against her back as he waited for her to respond, leaving her to take the lead. As he usually did in situations involving anybody else other than the two of them. Karen pinched the bridge of her nose hard, trying to decide what the best course of action was. Her friends would never leave without the truth. Mr-Lie-Detector-Matt would be able to tell too, if she was just spinning some random story.

She took a deep breath, just before Matt erupted again, "Are you guys friends? Or are you seeing each other? Because he's not safe, Karen!"

"And you are what, exactly?" Frank raised a threatening eyebrow, leaning forward in his chair before Karen nudged him back. He settled back obediently, the fingers of the hand not on Karen's back drumming an impatient beat on the armrest. 

"Boys, please. Before I get a migraine," Karen felt like she was sighing for the umpteenth time that day. She should have just done the overtime. Even in the shoes. Shit, she would have rather suffered the shoes. 

Matt made an impatient gesture with his hand she took to mean 'get on with it', before taking his glasses off and rubbing at his eyes tiredly. 

Now that she had the floor, the words wouldn't come. Karen opened her mouth, wondering what was the best way to phrase this. 

"Frank's - Well, I guess he's what you would call - he kind of started of as a houseguest awhile back - "

"A houseguest?" Foggy spluttered.

Karen pressed a hand to her lips, "Well, you know he was cleared of all charges and he was just looking for a place to crash - "

"He still killed dozens of people."

"Okay, fair. But only bad people, like you, Matt. And he was kind of paying rent by fixing stuff up around my house and cooking, because you know I can't really cook for shit guys except for what my grandmother taught me and Frank makes really great pasta you guys should try it some time - "

Frank leaned in, whispering into her ear, "Ma'am, the point."

"Right," Karen brushed her hair out of her face, noting the slightly stunned looks on Matt and Foggy's faces at their easy interaction. "So what I'm really trying to say is, Frank has been around for awhile, and he's really helped me stay out of trouble. Like you know when I write articles about dangerous people and they send thugs after me. Frank's really helped to keep them off my back. He's kinda useful. And he always had insights to the military or the government portion of my work which has been more than valuable in my research - "

Karen could feel it getting away from her. In some small part of her brain, she realised it but she couldn't make herself stop. And she knew full well Matt was listening to her heartbeat racing away.

"Where does he sleep?" Foggy interrupted. "I know you only have one bedroom."

"You see, the couch was where he slept, but it wasn't the greatest place, and it was really bad for Frank's back so I - "

"What Karen is trying to say - ," Frank cut across her rambling with a firm tone, wrapping his arm around her waist and stilling her nervous movement, " - is that things happened, and that we have been married for six months."

Karen would swear up and down that she would be able to hear a mouse breathe in the silence that ensued.

Foggy looked like he wasn't breathing, and his face was turning purple. His phone had fallen from his hands into his lap and bounced onto the ground, but he remained motionless. As if he'd been turned to stone. Karen wondered if Marci would kill her if Foggy had an aneurysm in her apartment.

On the other hand, it took Matt only a few seconds to react. He surged to his feet, hands clenched and ready to go. "Are you serious, Karen?"

The expression on her face was a cross between exasperation and panic, Frank would tell her later. "Deadly," Karen hiccuped, her hand creeping across her waist to grab at Frank's desperately, anchoring herself to him. 

Oh, she knew telling Matt and Foggy was going to be hard. Again, she didn't expect that it was going to be this soon, or that she would be this frantic. Regardless of her relationship with Frank, these were two friends that she wanted to keep for a long long while. It had taken so much to repair these relationships, she wasn't ready to lose them again. Maybe that's why she'd put off telling them until there wasn't a choice left. 

"I can't believe - "

Frank got to his feet slowly, sliding Karen off gently and pushing her behind him. Striding forward to face Matt, Frank bumped his shoes with his boots, tilting his head to regard him. 

"I think what you mean to say, is that you are a supportive friend. Even though you let these two people think you were dead for a year."

Matt raised his chin to glare at Frank, his gaze settling somewhere on a point between Frank's nose and ear, "Why have you done this?"

"Why have I - " Frank barked out a laugh, reaching out behind him as Karen moved to take his hand. "Believe me, Red, when I say this was the last thing I expected. Sorta fell into it, if you get what I mean."

"If you hurt her, I'll - "

"You'll what?" Frank challenged. "You won't get the chance because I'll have set myself on fire first before harming her in any way. Ya hear?"

Matt turned his head, listening to something no one else in the room could hear. Karen could see the war happening in his head play out across his face, and she gripped onto Frank's fingers tightly. Praying.

In a movement that seemed to pain him, Matt stepped back, nodding at Frank. She could feel Frank physically relaxing, and visibly easing his tense posture. Her insides uncoiled themselves, and Karen threaded her fingers through Frank's, taking his hand fully for the first time in full view of Matt and Foggy.

Foggy seemed to have remembered how to breathe during this time, and he pulled at his collar, loosening at his tie as he stood. "So uh, thanks for the drinks and hospitality, Karen. But I think we'd best be going." He tugged on Matt's arm a little, gesturing towards the door. "Frank," Foggy nodded.

"Nelson," Frank said as he nodded back amicably. They'd never had any real beef. Karen remembered Frank saying once that he thought Foggy would be a funny guy to get to know. 

Matt appeared to be struggling for words, but he too settled a nod before following after Foggy. Just before he stepped out, Matt turned imperceptibly in their direction, tapping at his ear with a finger. The intent was clear.

 _I'll be listening_. 

Frank growled under his breath, and Karen gripped his hand tightly, holding him steady. She knew Matt was just worried, and intended well. Soon, she foresaw that she would need to find a way to get them all to play nice with each other.

But for now, the door shut peacefully behind them, and then all was quiet again.

"I think that went okay," Frank ambled off to the kitchen, taking their glasses with them as he went and stowing away the bottle of whiskey for another time. 

"Did you really have to blurt it out like that?" Karen wrinkled her nose as he returned to steer them both to bed, chuckling slightly. 

"You looked like you needed help with words for awhile there, Reporter Page."

"I wasn't expecting to need them, was I?" 

Frank snorted, earning a dig in the ribs from Karen's elbow. "Now that they know..."

Karen looked up in the middle of exchanging her blouse for one of his larger shirts that she preferred to sleep in.

"Should we go get rings?"

Karen considered the idea for a moment, mildly surprised that Frank had raised it actually. They hadn't gotten rings initially because wearing one would invite more questions than needed. And she hadn't liked the idea of getting one only to keep it out of sight. "You going to explain to my office as well how I got the rings?"

"Only if they show up at our door unannounced," Frank said with a grin, climbing into bed.

"Our, huh?"

Frank tucked her head under his arm, scoffing, "Baby, this place has been ours since you started keeping boxes of bullets in the TV console just next to the remote."

"True."

"Goodnight, Mrs Castle."

"Goodnight, Mr Page."

**Author's Note:**

> this was totally going to happen and now we'll never see it. a travesty.
> 
> tumblr: [here](http://ltfrankcastle.tumblr.com)  
> twitter: [here](http://twitter.com/ltfrankcastie)


End file.
